Yoga is a personal journey, and if you are doing it alone, you may sometimes ponder about your progress. Remember how you always put in extra effort to win in a relay race on sports day? This is the result of challenge-based learning to motivate and enhance active participation. In other words, as people, we love rewards. This is exactly why we need challenges in life.
How do you gauge your progress without putting your practice to the test? Yoga is about combining your body and mind with your self-awareness. You will find this journey to be joyful if you constantly challenge yourself to perfect a difficult pose. Simply, incorporating yoga challenges for 1 person into your regular routine can help you discover the capabilities of your body and mind. So are you up to Yoga Challenges for one Person? We know you can do it!
What is a Yoga Challenge?
Firstly, a challenge is allowing yourself to overcome something that seems difficult. Tackling a hard task may throw you out of your comfort zone, but once solved, it gives you immense pleasure. This is why we say problems are adventures in disguise. Simply put, don’t know if you can do something yet? Take on a one-person yoga challenge.
Yoga challenges are a series of poses articulated in a discipline to ensure you are practising regularly. It rewards you with a feeling of “Yes, I did it.” A yoga challenge makes you happy, healthy, flexible, and much more. But most importantly, you will become much more conscious about the power of your body and mind.
Beginner
The goal can be quite simple if you are a beginner, willing to participate in a yoga challenge for 1 person. You may just want to join a challenge to commit to regular yoga classes. A challenge for a first-timer has its perks. Discovering your strength, feeling the power of yoga, and letting it flow through every muscle and tissue of your body is plain joy. But pairing it up with a challenge will take it up a notch.
Intermediate or advanced
There are poses that require a certain level of body strength, balance, and flexibility. You are already a few steps ahead, as you have probably already identified what part of your body needs extra attention, unlike first-timers. There are unlimited ways to improve your fitness level. You need to focus on your personal goal. And, to unlock it, you need to bravely welcome newness. Remember life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.
Commitment Issues? Say no more!
A yoga challenge does not have to be a long-term commitment. You can choose a challenge with easy yoga poses that suit your abilities. It can vary from seven days to a whole year. It’s best to take up a challenge that seems like something you can stick with. If you are a beginner, start with shorter commitments, like seven days to two-week. For advanced practitioners, there are challenges that focus on specific asanas, or forms. There are challenges that last up to a whole year, so there is something for everyone.
Why Should You Do a Yoga Challenge?
Let’s break it down for you. Do you remember why you considered yoga as a form of exercise? Let’s remind you that yoga is a journey of combining your mind and body. It’s about being more aware of your body flow. There are multiple reasons to turn to yoga. Sometimes yoga seems to be the easiest choice due to its slow movements, which is a plus for beginners and older people. This form of meditation can become a huge part of their life. For people suffering from back or joint pain, yoga has been magical. Whatever it is, you must start by digging deeper to find your reason. Once you have an answer, you will have more perspective.
For example, you can begin by pinpointing the areas that you want to work on during your yoga challenge for 1 person. It is common for us to avoid difficult postures in our practice. We tend to repeat the same routine and our bodies become accustomed to it. This is where we are dodging growth; we are not leaving any room for improvement. To be more precise, let’s tell you why you should contemplate 1 person yoga challenge poses.
A yoga challenge will allow you to register your progress, overcome a difficult posture, and transform your weakness into a strength in no time. But there’s more to it. We have shortlisted 10 reasons why you should sign up for a yoga challenge.
Inspiration and motivation
Yoga poses look and feel beautiful. But to get into one of those is not as easy as it seems. If you are a first-timer, you may lack the thrust to flow from one to another. But once you are a part of a yoga challenge, you will want to push yourself to try different poses. It will surely inspire you to step out of your comfort zone and conquer.
Stress release
Any form of exercise releases tension from our mind and body. It can even be a form of breathing or meditation. Don’t limit yourself to active workouts that don;t serve your purpose. You are an individual who deserves to relax. And yoga is undeniably the way forward. It will allow you to take deep breaths and close all the tabs in your head.
Mindfulness
This is an excellent way to be present and mindful. It helps you to disconnect yourself from all the baggage and just be you. There is nothing more satisfying than connecting with yourself. It is all a part of self-love and self-care. You begin with self-awareness which is the first sign of acceptance. Then you learn to love yourself in the process.
Goals and discipline
Getting down to business, the most common reason for many to consider a yoga challenge is to achieve a yoga goal. They want to overcome a struggle point in their body, or maybe get into a dream yoga pose with the help of a yoga challenge. You know what helps, discipline, something that we often fail to live up to. But the truth is, habits make it or break it. A yoga challenge will help you self-discipline.
Tribe and Community
Doing anything alone is a struggle on its own. For example, practicing and challenging yourself can require a tremendous amount of motivation. And sometimes, we may fall short of it. So to give you constant motivation, belonging to a group of like-minded people will solve the problem. This is a huge benefit of joining a yoga challenge: You now belong to a tribe. People who share the same journey and goals find it easier to stay consistent, and you never know, you might make a new friend as well. It’s a win-win really!
Honestly, the list goes on. In fact, there is no reason for you to not join a yoga challenge.
How Do I Join a Yoga Challenge?
There are so many ways for you to participate in a challenge with one-person yoga poses. You can join a physical class near you, sign up for a virtual class, or just tag along with social media hashtags to have a little bit of fun. You’ll be surprised with how many people actively participate on social media and jump onto a cool yoga pose.
Firstly, make a plan. Before joining any challenge, it has to serve a purpose. Why have you decided to join the challenge? If it has a well-defined goal, then it makes it easier for you to choose the challenge. For example, if you are a beginner, you might just want to feel motivated to stay on your fitness journey.
But for an advanced practitioner, you may want to join a challenge to achieve a certain pose. So you have to do a little bit of homework to find something suitable. Having said that, everything has become so easily accessible due to the virtual world. You can almost do everything with just one click. There are many amazing yoga instructors who are now open for virtual classes from all over the world.
Instagram challenges are becoming really popular nowadays, which are usually sponsored by instructors. Find ones that are starting soon so you can take advantage of it. Read the guidelines or rules provided and try to follow them. You’ll get the most out of these challenges if you fully engage yourself. Be sure to have a lot of fun and don’t forget to follow the hashtags to find your source of inspiration.
Different Yoga Challenges for One Person to Try
Thanks to the Internet, there are unlimited one-person yoga challenges available across different platforms. You have so many options to choose from that help you in so many ways. You can now work on improving your mental and physical health even from home. All you need is a yoga mat.
21-Day Meditation Challenge
Anyone and everyone can join a meditation challenge. The purpose of a meditation yoga challenge is to explore ways to connect to your inner self. It is the best way to jump into simple asanas to incorporate yoga poses for relaxation. There are many yoga gurus who offer a 21-day meditation challenge to welcome you into the world of meditation. You will come to know about the obstacles of all phases of your life and how to tackle them. All you need is to allow 10 minutes a day. That’s how simple and easy this process of building your concentration is. You’ll discover a new, calmer, and happier version of yourself.
Strength Challenge
This is a level two challenge, with a relatively long period of time. A strength challenge will focus on building your core strength and flexibility. Your regular practice will start to feel more enjoyable and satisfactory through this challenge.
Some of the benefits of strength challenges are stress relief, losing weight, feeling stronger by building your core strength and flexibility. Many people have shared their personal win on how a strength challenge helped them to achieve difficult poses like Chakrasana (The Wheel Pose).
21-Day Pranayama Breathing Challenge
Yoga means connection. And the first step to connecting to your inner self is by breathing exercise. A 21-day pranayama breathing challenge is all about breathing. You’ll learn about the benefits of breathing and how it affects our movements, both physically and mentally.
This challenge is really simple and solely focuses on exercises that help us to breathe easily and efficiently. Focus on the rhythm, and the results will follow.
Morning Yoga
Morning workouts set a tone for the rest of the day. What better way to unwind and feel your body flow other than a morning yoga session? There is nothing better than starting your day with a morning yoga challenge. It is not necessary for you to have an active, core-building workout. The purpose of this challenge is to wake up your body. So it’s best to listen to your body and move accordingly.
Yoga Pose Challenge
A Yoga pose challenge is for every yogi, novice and experienced. It is an attempt to build a relationship with your mat with no-strings attached. If you have met with your inspiration to commit to a challenge all by yourself, you are in the right space. Tap right into it by asking yourself a few questions.
What are the poses you have been wanting to do? How do you want to achieve them? There are no time constraints in a yoga pose challenge. You are free to join according to your goal. All you need is a plan. A plan to roll out a series of poses you want to focus on, and join the challenge accordingly. Make sure you don’t jump into a pose without doing your regular flow. Prepare your body to release the right energy. Then gradually attempt the poses; it’s best to start with yoga poses for beginners. Move forward, one by one according to your plan. Don’t forget to have fun with it, and take a photo for the ‘gram.
The benefits of a yoga challenge
We are all creatures of habit
Allocating a certain amount of time in your schedule for yoga will instill your habit. This is for beginners. It will gradually become a part of your life to roll out the mat and start your practice.
Practice makes perfect
You can have your doubts about a certain pose, even if you are a regular practitioner. By participating in a yoga challenge, you will become more familiar with all the asanas. This can be your opportunity to correct your posture and techniques. Even for beginners, you can discover all the muscles of your body during your stretches. You will soon realize how practice makes your poses seem easy breezy, boosting your confidence along the way.
Physical reward
Let’s start with your breathing techniques. You’ll be surprised how breathing during poses can help so much with balance and flexibility. A yoga challenge will push you to activate your muscles and tissues like never before. A simple example is touching your toe with a forward bend pose. It may seem easy, but for many with flexibility limitations, it can be a challenging pose. Long story short, a yoga challenge is bound to make you feel stronger and happier by the end of its course.
Do I need any yoga equipment for yoga challenges?
This doesn’t not have a yes or no answer. It depends on your personal goal. Adding equipment or a yoga prop can add more value to your poses for sure. For example, if you are adamant on correcting an inversion pose as a part of your challenge, you can definitely take advantage of yoga swings or hammocks. However, most yoga challenges only require a mat.
If you are a part of a class, and the challenge requires you to incorporate yoga blocks or straps for certain poses, then it’s best you get one. Perhaps you can check the outline or guidelines before signing up to rule out confusions.
Having said that, a yoga challenge for one person is a personal journey, and you can keep it as simple and basic as you please.
Conclusion
Yoga challenges are full of rewards. Choosing to focus on your well-being and challenging yourself to achieve your goals has never been this easy. In today’s world, with the help of yoga gurus and social media, you will find this journey to be fun, satisfying, and wholesome. And there are no limitations to it.
You can start with meditation one week, and end up participating in a 30-day challenge—that’s how inspiring yoga challenges can be. You’ll be amazed at the transformation of your growth. We cannot wait for you to discover the better, healthier, and happier version of yourself.
